Chuck Sweeny: Rep. Jim Sacia still considering options

Saturday

Sep 14, 2013 at 12:01 AMSep 14, 2013 at 1:23 PM

In a recent column I speculated that Jim Sacia, who is retiring at the end of September as state representative, would run for lieutenant governor. He’d told me he planned to seek statewide office, and that seemed the most logical one to consider.

Chuck Sweeny

In a recent column I speculated that Jim Sacia, who is retiring at the end of September as state representative, would run for lieutenant governor. He’d told me he planned to seek statewide office, and that seemed the most logical one to consider.

However, “lite gov” candidates now have to run on a ticket with a governor candidate. In other words, you can want to run for the post, but you have to be picked by someone running for governor.

Sacia, a Pecatonica Republican, wanted to run with Dan Rutherford, the state treasurer from Chenoa. But Rutherford “was seeking someone from a major metro area who was a minority,” Sacia said Friday.

That pretty much leaves Sacia out. Rutherford picked Steve Kim, a Chicago lawyer and businessman, to run with him.

The last we heard of Kim, he was running for attorney general and losing to Democrat Lisa Madigan in 2010.

Sacia said he’s still exploring options to run for elective office. How about secretary of state? Incumbent Democrat Jesse White, who is running for a fifth term, has yet to attract an opponent.

“Jesse would be a tough nut to crack. That would be a real tough seat to take away from Jesse,” Sacia said.

Sacia said he’s considering “other opportunities, and once I put it together I’ll give you a call.”

The retired career FBI man hastened to add: “You can take running for Winnebago County sheriff off that list of options.”

When I talked Friday to Sacia, he said he was “in Springfield, cleaning out my office.”

Who will replace Sacia? GOP chairmen “have announced they’ve picked someone,” and are expected to reveal the name soon, he said.

The “lite gov” job is mainly to stay alive to take over in case the governor is indicted, convicted, chased out of town by angry taxpayers — or dies. He or she also oversees some obscure councils dealing with rural affairs, rivers and “main streets.”

Quinn, who had been the lieutenant governor, became governor in 2009 when then Gov. Rod Blagojevich was impeached by the House and convicted in the Senate.

One guy who held the job was honest enough to admit the lieutenant governor’s job was meaningless. Dave O’Neal of Belleville had the job from 1977 to 1981 and quit, saying he was bored because he had nothing to do.